Chart of the Day: Commuting by Automobile 1960 – 2013

At this point, it’s perhaps over-wrought to talk about millennials and their trends. But there it is, the auto commuting trend line sinking down like a fishing pole. Via the Census blog, here’s a chart from the most recent American Community Survey (ACS) data:

As you can see, most people drive. Most people drive alone. But here’s the generational break down:

In 2013, about 74 percent of workers ages 16 to 24 living in principal cities commuted by automobile, compared with about 80 percent of the oldest workers. Workers between the ages of 25 and 29 living in principal cities showed the largest auto commuting declines since 2006, at about 4 percentage points. This is also the group that was least likely to have a vehicle at home in 2013.

These are very slow-moving trends, and changing a city’s commute mode share does not happen overnight. So most people are likely to be driving alone in their cars for a some time to come.